SUNGLASESS AND ROCKETS Part 2: The Machine

INTRUDERS

The faults in the launching were not exclusively related to the rocket.

It was evident that the bridge had also failed: it didn't come loose. But, what if it had come loose, how in the world could we ever reach the platform, 150 feet down?

What was certain was that we were in a hurry and had no choice but to cross the damned bridge. The smoke had started to give way. A couple of feet across the hatch—or better said, a couple of feet down!—the railing on the ground was becoming visible through patches of fog.

It was a death trap. A tangle of sharp metallic bulges touched lightly the fuselage of the rocket.

I decided to consult Darwin.

"How does everything look over there?"

"There are damages...but I think you can walk over..." he vacillated and lifted himself stretching out his arms. "Yes, you can walk over," he slightly turned, "you must be careful though...let's go."

"Let's go."

I placed my right hand on one side of the hatch and stood on the edge.

No. The picture did not look good.

Holding onto both sides, I put my head a little inside the cabin and looked up. Somehow it came to my mind that the doctor might help us get out.

"Time flies," I heard Darwin say.

Darwin was right. And the doctor did not detach from the control panel anyway.

I turned toward the front. My eyes tear filled from the smoke, spotted an intact section of railings beyond the wrecked edge.

I walloped.

I miscalculated. I fell on top of a damaged section making a loud clatter and lost my balance.

"Watch out!" Darwin exclaimed.

The railing was so hot that it felt like a grill: it was almost roasting my shoulder and hip.

"I'm fine," I said with a shrunken stomach.

You could start seeing the bottom through the smoke. The wires from the section where I was lying down were more separated from each other than they seemed from the hatch.

Even so, I managed to straighten up.

"Ready?" Darwin wanted to know.

I detached my eyes from my trembling legs and looked forward.

"Ready."

A few steps ahead, Darwin was slowly turning his head towards me.

"There's the tower," he pointed to the front with his left hand. "You just have to make it there; the rest is a piece of cake."

The orange cubicle of the elevator started to become visible through the smoke. A distance no greater than 30 or 35 feet was keeping us apart.

That encouraged me.

"Let's get going," I said.

Darwin took the first step. The bridge creaked loudly. My friend stopped tentatively and took another step.

The bridge creaked again.

"We gotta hurry," he whispered.

I moved forward timidly. Darwin preceded me. The bridge wouldn't stop squeaking.

It vibrated like a diving board.

I held myself back.

Darwin kept on going through the horrible metal cracklings, clinging to the left railing with both hands.

I tried to follow him, but my instinct prevented me.

"Darwin," I called out. "It'll be best if—"

I interrupted myself.

A sharp electric buzz invaded the whole vault in a second. It was coming from above. When I looked up I discovered that the enormous gears from the hatches were starting to function, with a grumbled squeaking. The surrounding luminosity suddenly went down.

"What the hell?" I murmured.

The hatches began to ramble in opposite ways, adding a strong murmur to the noise of our surroundings. Big chunks of concrete came loose from the hatches, raining down on the empty space, along with enormous muddy branches...

"They're shutting the hatches!" I heard Darwin say in spite of the ruckus. "It's because of the satellite!"

I checked the time on my unbreakable Omega; it was seven fifty-two with ten seconds. The window of time was about to expire.

"One minute left for the satellite to pass!" I muttered. Once again, I gazed up. The hatches kept moving shut. "It was close."

A short distance ahead, above the bridge, a beam of green light appeared. The smoke reflected it perfectly. It had a vertical position and came from above...

"A laser," I muttered, aghast. "A laser beam."

Darwin stopped and turned around. Then, he looked up.

"It's the satellite's laser!"

Felix's voice resounded in the loudspeakers from the vault.

"They have just detected us."